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THE   CHOCOLATE-PLANT 


(THEOBROMA  CACAO) 


AND 


ITS     PRODUCTS 


THE  FRUITING-STEM  OF  A  CHOCOLATE-PLANT,  THE  FLOWERS,  YOUNG  FRUIT, 
AND  RIPENED  POD  ALL  SPRINGING  FROM  THE  OLDER  WOOD. 


WVEESITT 


DORCHESTER,    MASS.: 

WALTER    BAKER    AND    COMPANY. 

1891. 


Copyright,  1890, 
BY  WALTER  BAKER  AND  COMPANY. 


JOHN  WILSON  AND  SON,  CAMBRIDGE. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

INTRODUCTORY      •    5 

I.  OUTLINE  OF  THE  EARLY  HISTORY  OF  THE  CHOCOLATE  PLANT. 
—  ITS  PRIMITIVE  CULTIVATION.  —  EARLY  METHODS  OF  UTIL- 
IZING THE  SEEDS.  —  INTRODUCTION  OF  THE  BEVERAGE  INTO 
EUROPE 7 

II.  THE  NATURAL  HISTORY  OF  THE  CHOCOLATE  PLANT.  —  THE 
PRESENF  RANGE  OF  THE  PLANT  UNDER  MODERN  METHODS  OF 
CULTIVATION.  —  COMMERCIAL  RELATIONS 16 

III.  THE    SEEDS   OF   THE   CHOCOLATE    PLANT,  AS  THEY  APPEAR   IN 

COMMERCE.  —  THEIR  MICROSCOPIC  AND  CHEMICAL  CHARACTER     23 

IV.  MANUFACTURE  OF  CHOCOLATE,  AND  BREAKFAST  COCOA    ...     26 

V.  SOME  PHYSIOLOGICAL  ASPECTS  OF  CHOCOLATE  SEEDS. — VALUE 
OF  CHOCOLATE  AS  AN  ARTICLE  OF  FOOD.  —  APPLICATIONS  OF 
COCOA-BUTTER  32 

VI.     A  FEW  CULINARY  RELATIONS  OF  CHOCOLATE  AND   BREAKFAST 

COCOA,  BY  MRS.  ELLEN  H.  RICHARDS  AND  Miss  PARLOA    .     35 


INTRODUCTORY. 


T^OUR  years  ago,  a  convenient  handbook  on  the  pro- 
duction and  use  of  various  preparations  of  the 
chocolate  plant  was  published  by  our  firm.  The  present 
work  is  designed  to  give,  with  considerably  more  detail, 
some  of  the  interesting  facts  relative  to  the  early  history 
and  cultivation  of  the  chocolate  tree,  as  well  as  a  fuller 
account  of  its  botany -and  the  chemistry  of  its  products. 
Since  this  brochure  will  doubtless  fall  into  the  hands 
of  some  who  do  not  have  access  to  the  earlier  work,  we 
have  used  with  freedom  some  of  the  material  employed 
in  that;  but  we  hope  that  these  necessary  repetitions  will 
increase  instead  of  impair  the  value  of  the  pages  now 
before  the  reader. 

We  trust  that  this  second  treatise  may  be  acceptable  to 
our  many  friends  who  gave  so  warm  a  welcome  to  the 
first. 

WALTER   BAKER  AND   COMPANY. 


DORCHESTER,  MASSACHUSETTS, 
1891. 


OF 

UNIVERSITY 


THE   CHOCOLATE-PLANT, 


I. 

OUTLINE   OF  THE   EARLY   HISTORY   OF  THE 
CHOCOLATE-PLANT. 

A  T  the  discovery  of  America,  the  natives  of  the  narrower  portion 
•***  of  the  continent  bordering  on  the  Caribbean  Sea,  were  found 
in  possession  of  two  luxuries  which  have  been  everywhere  recog- 
nized as  worthy  of  extensive  cultivation  ;  namely,  tobacco  and  choco- 
late. The  former  of  these  has  made  its  way  into  climates  totally 
unlike  that  of  its  early  home  ;  the  other  of  these  plants,  since  it 
cannot  bear  the  low  temperature  occasionally  experienced  in  our 
subtropics,  is  more  restricted  in  its  range.  The  chocolate-plant  is 
confined  to  the  warmer  regions  of  the  globe,  where  it  finds  the 
congenial  climatic  conditions  which  it  enjoyed  and  still  enjoys  in 
its  earliest  home  in  America. 

The  first  references  to  the  chocolate-plant  and  its  products  are 
found  in  the  accounts  of  the  explorers  and  conquerors  who  followed 
Columbus.  These  first  descriptions  of  this  singular  tree,  of  its 
fruits  and  seeds,  of  its  uses  and  the  methods  of  cultivation,  are 
remarkably  accurate  in  all  essential  particulars. 

One  of  the  earliest,  if  not  indeed  the  very  earliest,  delineations 
of  the  chocolate-tree  is  in  a  rare  volume  by  Bontekoe.  The  en- 
graving, which  is  here  reproduced  with  fidelity,  represents  the 
chocolate-tree  with  its  comparatively  large  fruits  or  pods  borne  on 


8 


THE   CHOCOLATE-PLANT. 


the  main  stem.  This  might  be  thought  at  first  to  be  an  error  of 
the  artist,  but  it  is  in  fact  a  rude  expression  of  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  peculiarities  of  the  plant.  As  will  be  shown  presently, 
when  a  fuller  description  of  the 'plant  is  given,  the  fruits  are,  as  a 
rule,  formed  on  the  older  parts.  Another  interesting  feature  is 
shown  in  the  engraving:1  the  chocolate-tree  is  sheltered  by  a  larger 


tree  of  some  other  kind  near  it.  We  shall  see  shortly,  that  this 
practice  of  planting  a  sheltering  tree  to  shade  the  young  chocolate 
plants  for  a  time,  is  still  kept  up  wherever  the  plant  is  successfully 
cultivated.  It  is  certainly  interesting  that  this  point  in  cultivation, 
which  might  easily  have  been  thought  to  be  accidental  or  local,  was 
delineated  more  than  three  centuries  ago.  By  the  natives  of  tropi- 
cal America,  the  seeds  of  the  chocolate-plant,  which  will  be  more 

1  The  figure  in  the  left  of  the  foreground  is  said  by  Bontekoe  to  represent  the 
native  method  of  procuring  fire  by  rapidly  twirling  a  pointed  stick  in  a  groove  of  a 
piece  of  wood  placed  on  the  ground. 


OUTLINE    OF  ITS  EARLY  HISTORY. 


particularly  described  in  a  later  chapter,  were  first  roasted  and 
then  rudely  ground.  For  this  purpose  they  employed  the  flat  or 
curved  surface  of  the  sort  of  stone  used  by  them  to  grind  their 
maize,  or  Indian  corn.  In  the  engraving,  one  of  the  most  simple 
mills  or  flat  mortars  is  seen  with  its  roller.  The  roller  was  merely 
a  short  thick  stone  of  a  cylindrical  shape,  which  could  be  used  with 
one  or  both  hands  somewhat  after  the  manner  of  the  common  roll- 
ing-pin everywhere  used  in 
kitchens.  By  this  simple  ap- 
pliance, the  crushed  seeds 
were  mixed  with  various  in- 
gredients, among  which  may 
be  mentioned  spices  of  dif- 
ferent kinds.  A  modification 
of  this  was  later  used  in 
Spain.  See  page  15. 

The  drinks  made  from 
this  coarse  chocolate  were 
frequently  very  complex,  but  the  chocolate  itself  was  the  chief 
constituent.  It  was  the  custom  to  beat  the  mixture  into  a  froth 
or  foam,  by  means  of  stirrers,  of  mallet-like  forms;  in  fact,  it  is 
said  by  some  writers  that  the  very  name  chocolate,  is  derived 
from  a  native  word  indicating  the  noise  made  by  the  stirring  of 
the  beverage. 

Thus,  Thomas  Gage,  in  his  "  New  Survey  of  the  West  Indies," 
says  (under  date  of  1648),  "  The  name  chocolatte  is  an  Indian  name, 
and  is  compounded  from  atte,  as  some  say,  or  as  others,  atle,  which 
in  the  Mexican  language  signifieth  water,  and  from  the  sound 
which  the  water  (wherein  is  put  the  chocolatte)  makes,  as  choco, 
choco,  cJioco,  when  it  is  stirred  in  a  cup  by  an  instrument  called 
a  'molinet/  or  '  molinillo,'  until  it  bubble  and  rise  unto  a  froath." 


FROM  A  PHOTOGRAPH  OF  A  STONE  MILL, 
OR  FLAT  MORTAR. 


10 


THE   CHOCOLATE-PLANT: 


The  same  writer  gives  us  an  interesting  account  of  the  native 
method  of  preparing  the  drink.  From  the  extract,  which  is 
copied  without  -change  of  the  quaint  spelling,  it  will  be  seen  how 

wide  the  use  of  chocolate 
was  in  Europe  towards  the 
middle  of  the  seventeenth 
century  :  — 

"  Now,  for  the  making  or 
compounding  of  this  drink,  I 
shall  set  down  here  the  method. 
The  cacao  and  the  other  in- 
gredients must  be  beaten  in  a 
morter  of  stone,  or  (as  the 
Indians  use)  ground  upon  a 
broad  stone,  which  they  call 
Metate,  and  is  only  made  for 
that  use.  But  first  the  ingre- 
dients are  all  to  be  dried,  ex- 
cept the  Achiotte,  with  care 
that  they  be  beaten  to  powder, 
keeping  them  still  in  stirring 
that  they  be  not  burnt,  or  be- 
come black ;  for  if  they  be 
overdried,  they  will  be  bitter 
and  lose  their  virtue.  The  cin- 
namon and  the  long  red  pep- 
per are  to  be  first  beaten  with 
the  anniseed,  and  then  the  ca- 
cao, which  must  be  beaten  by 

little  and  little  till  it  be  all  powdered,  and  in  the  beating  it  must  be 
turned  round  that  it  may  mix  the  better.  Every  one  of  these  ingredients 
must  be  beaten  by  itself,  and  then  all  be  put  into  the  vessel  where  the 
cacao  is,  which  you  must  stir  together  with  a  spoon,  and  then  take  out 
that  paste,  and  put  it  into  the  morter,  under  which  there  must  be  a 


SOME   OF    THE    FORMS    OF   CHOCOLATE    STIRRERS 
("MOLINETS"). 

From  a  treatise  published  in  the  Seventeenth  Century. 


OUTLINE   OF  ITS  EARLY  HISTORY.  II 

little  fire,  after  the  confection  is  made ;  but  if  more  fire  be  put  under 
than  will  only  warm  it,  then  the  unctuous  part  will  dry  away.  The 
Achiotte  also  must  be  put  in  in  the  beating,  that  it  may  the  better  take  the 
colour.  All  the  ingredients  must  be  searced,  save  only  the  cacao,  and 
if  from  the  cacao  the  dry  shell  be  taken,  it  will  be  the  better.  When 
it  is  well  beaten  and  incorporated  (which  will  be  known  by  the  short- 
nesse  of  it),  then  with  a  spoon  (so  in  the  Indias  is  used)  is  taken  up 
some  of  the  paste,  which  will  be  almost  liquid,  and  made  into  tablets, 
or  else  without  a  spoon  put  into  boxes,  and  when  it  is  cold  it  will  be 
hard. 

"Those  that  make  it  into  tablets  put  a  spoonful  of  the  paste  upon  a 
piece  of  paper  (the  Indians  put  it  upon  the  leaf  of  a  plaintin  tree),  where, 
being  put  into  the  shade  (for  in  the  sun  it  melts  and  dissolves),  it  grows 
hard ;  and  then  bowing  the  paper  or  leaf,  the  tablet  fals  off  by  reason 
of  -the  fatnesse  of  the  paste.  But  if  it  be  put  into  anything  of  earth  or 
wood,  it  stickes  fast,  and  will  not  come  off  but  with  scraping  or  break- 
ing. The  manner  of  drinking  it  is  diverse ;  the  one  (being  the  way 
most  used  in  Mexico)  is  to  take  it  hot  with  Atolle,  dissolving  a  tablet  in 
hot  water,  and  stirring  and  beating  it  in  the  cup,  when  it  is  to  be  drunk, 
with  a  Molinet,  and  when  it  is  well  stirred  to  a  scumme,  or  froth,  then 
to  fill  the  cup  with  hot  Atolle,  and  so  drink  it  sup  by  sup.  Another  way 
is  that  the  chocolate,  being  dissolved  with  cold  water  and  stirred  with 
the  Molinet,  and  the  scumme  being  taken  off  and  put  into  another 
vessel,  the  remainder  be  set  upon  the  fire,  with  as  much  sugar  as  will 
sweeten  it,  and  when  it  is  warme,  then  to  powre  it  upon  the  scumme 
which  was  taken  off  before,  and  so  to  drink  it.  But  the  most  ordinary 
way  is  to  warme  the  water  very  hot,  and  then  to  powre  out  half  the  cup 
full  that  you  mean  to  drink ;  and  to  put  into  it  a  tablet  or  two,  or  as 
much  as  will  thicken  reasonably  the  water,  and  then  grinde  it  well  with 
the  Molinet,  and  when  it  is  well  ground  and  risen  to  a  scumme,  to  fill 
the  cup  with  hot  water,  and  so  drink  it  by  sups  (having  sweetened  it 
with  sugar),  and  to  eat  it  with  a  little  conserve  or  maple  bred,  steeped 
into  the  chocolatte. 

"  Besides  these  ways  there  is  another  way  (which  is  much  used  in  the 
Island  of  Santo  Domingo),  which  is  to  put  the  chocolatte  into  a  pipkin 
with  a  little  water,  and  to  let  it  boyte  well  till  it  be  dissolved,  and  then 


12  THE   CHOCOLATE-PLANT: 

to  put  in  sufficient  water  and  sugar  according  to  the  quantity  of  the 
chocolatte,  and  then  to  boyle  it  again  untill  there  comes  an  oily  scumme 
upon  it,  and  then  to  drink  it. 

"  There  is  another  way  yet  to  drink  chocolatte,  which  is  cold,  which 
the  Indians  use  at  feasts  to  refresh  themselves,  and  it  is  made  after  this 
manner :  The  chocolatte  (which  is  made  with  none,  or  very  few,  ingre- 
dients) being  dissolved  in  cold  water  with  the  Molinet.  they  take  off  the 
scumme  or  crassy  part,  which  riseth  in  great  quantity,  especially  when 
the  cacao  is  older  and  more  putrefied.  The  scumme  they  lay  aside  in  a 
little  dish  by  itself,  and  then  put  sugar  into  that  part  from  whence  was 
taken  the  scumme,  and  then  powre  it  from  on  high  into  the  scumme,  and 
so  drink  it  cold.  And  this  drink  is  so  cold  that  it  agreeth  not  with  all 
men's  stomachs  ;  for  by  experience  it  hath  been  found  that  it  doth  hurt 
by  causing  pains  in  the  stomach,  especially  to  women. 

"The  third  way  of  taking  it  is  the  most  used,  and  thus  certainly  it 
doth  no  hurt,  neither  know  I  why  it  may  not  be  used  as  well  in  England 
as  in  other  parts,  both  hot  and  cold ;  for  where  it  is  so  much  used,  the 
most,  if  not  all,  as  well  in  the  Indias  as  in  Spain,  Italy,  Flanders  (which 
is  a  cold  countrey),  find  that  it  agreeth  well  with  them.  True  it  is,  it  is 
used  more  in  the  Indias  than  in  the  European  parts,  because  there  the 
stomachs  are  more  apt  to  faint  than  here,  and  a  cup  of  chocolatte  well 
confectioned  comforts  and  strengthens  the  stomach.  For  myself  I  must 
say,  I  used  it  twelve  years  constantly,  drinking  one  cup  in  the  morning, 
another  yet  before  dinner  between  nine  or  ten  of  the  clock  ;  another 
within  an  hour  or  two  after  dinner,  and  another  between  four  and  five 
in  the  afternoon ;  and  when  I  was  purposed  to  sit  up  late  to  study, 
I  would  take  another  cup  about  seven  or  eight  at  night,  which  would 
keep  me  waking  till  about  midnight.  And  if  by  chance  I  did  neglect 
any  of  these  accustomed  houres,  I  presently  found  my  stomach  fainty. 
And  with  this  custome  I  lived  twelve  years  in  those  parts  healthy,  with- 
out any  obstructions,  or  oppilations,  not  knowing  what  either  ague  or 
feaver  was." 

After  its  introduction  into  Europe  from  America,  chocolate 
was  used  at  first  only  as  a  luxury,  but  it  has  steadily  advanced 


OUTLINE   OF  ITS  EARLY  HISTORY. 


FRONTISPIECE  OF  ONE  OF  THE  EARLIEST  WORKS  ON  CHOCOLATE. 

in  popular  esteem  until  it  is  now  recognized  as  one  of  the  neces- 
saries of  life. 

It  would  be  interesting  to  speculate  as  to  the  accidents  which 
led  to  the  original  use  of  such  beverages  as  coffee,  tea,  and 
chocolate.  The  earliest  employment  of  the  two  former  is  veiled 


14  THE  CHOCOLATE-PLANT: 

in  as  deep  a  mystery  as  that  which  surrounds  the  chocolate- 
plant.  All  were  used  at  the  outset  by  what  we  have  been 
accustomed  to  call  the  uncultivated  races  of  mankind,  but  we 
cannot  surmise  what  first  attracted  their  attention  to  these 
plants.  One  can  only  say  that  by  the  natives  of  lands  where 
the  plants  grow  naturally,  they  have  all  been  used  from  time 
immemorial,  and  that  all  three  are  welcome  gifts  from  a  rude 
state  of  civilization  to  the  highest  which  exists  to-day.  By  the 
savages  and  the  Aztecs  of  America,  by  the  roving  tribes  of 
Arabia,  and  by  the  dwellers  in  the  farther  East,  the  virtues  of 
these  three  plants  were  recognized  long  before  any  one  of  them 
was  introduced  into  Europe. 

There  is  reason  to  believe  that  long  before  the  discovery  of 
America,  Tea  and  Coffee  had  been  vaguely  known  to  travellers 
in  the  Orient,  as  curiosities,  much  as  we  to-day  regard  the  Kola- 
nut  and  Mate,  but  neither  Tea  nor  Coffee  was  then  employed  as 
a  beverage  anywhere  in  Western  Europe.  In  fact,  all  trust- 
worthy evidence  in  the  case  leads  us  to  a  surprising  conclusion, 
namely,  That  Chocolate  was  the  first  of  these  beverages  to  at- 
tract the  attention  of  Europeans.  This  beverage  rapidly  made  its 
way  throughout  Europe,  beginning  from  Spain  and  Portugal, 
whither  its  discoverers  had  brought  it.  The  other  beverages, 
Tea  and  Coffee,  soon  followed,  and  after  a  short  time  became 
associated  together  in  popular  regard. 

In  a  duodecimo  work  published  in  1685,  and  now  very  rare, 
the  beverages  derived  from  these  three  plants  are  described  in 
a  clear  and  forcible  manner.  The  reproduction  of  the  frontis- 
piece of  this  book,  given  above,  shows  how  intimate  the  asso- 
ciation of  these  beverages  was  regarded  even  two  centuries  ago. 
It  is  interesting  to  observe  the  distinction  made  by  the  artist  in 
the  receptacles  and  cups  for  holding  these  three  different  drinks. 


OUTLINE   OF  ITS  NATURAL  HISTORY.  15 

On  the  floor,  near  the  vase,  is  seen  one  of  the  chocolate-stirrers 
described  on  page   10. 

At  the  outset  the  manufacture  of  chocolate  in  Europe  was 
carried  on  with  substantially  the  same  appliances  as  those  used 
by  the  natives.  A  curious  indication  of  this  is  afforded  by  the 
engraving,  which  shows  that  the  Portuguese  mill  was  to  all  in- 
tents modelled  after  that  used  by  the  Mexicans. 


CHOCOLATE-GRINDING  IN  THE  SEVENTEENTH 
CENTURY. 

From  an  early  engraving. 


II. 


THE    NATURAL    HISTORY  OF   THE   CHOCOLATE- 
PLANT. 


THEOBROMA  CACAO. 

chocolate  plant  is  known  to  botanists  as  Theobroma 
Cacao.  The  first  or  generic  word  in  this  name  means 
food  of  the  gods.  The  genus  contains  six  species,  only  one 
of  which  is  generally  cultivated.  It  is  probable,  however,  that 
some  of  the  seeds  which  find  their  way  into  commerce  are 
yielded  by  other  and  wild  species.  It  is,  moreover,  more  than 


ITS  NATURAL   HISTORY. 


4 

FLOWERS,  FRUIT,  AND  SEEDS  OF  THEOBROMA. 
From  an  old  engraving. 

likely  that  among  the  numerous  varieties  of  Theobroma  Cacao 
now  cultivated  there  may  be  some  hybrids  between  the  different 
forms. 

The  plant  belongs  to  the  Sterculiaceae,  a  natural  order  con- 
taining forty-one  genera  and  five  hundred  and  twenty  species. 
The  general  habit  of  the  tree  is  well  shown  in  the  engraving. 


i8 


THE   CHOCOLATE-PLANT: 


FLOWERS,  FRUIT,  AND  SEEDS  OK  THEOBROMA. 
Front  a  recent  drawing. 


ITS  NATURAL  HISTORY.  19 

The  seeds  of  the  plant  are  borne  in  pods,  represented  in  the 
illustrations  on  pages  17  and  18,  the  former  taken  from  one  of 
the  early  works  on  the  subject.  No.  I  in  the  first  engraving  ex- 
hibits the  ripened  pod,  5  and  6  the  fruits  in  different  stages  of 
growth.  No.  2  shows  the  pod  cut  open  and  displays  some  of  the 
seeds,  while  3  and  4  are  the  seeds  themselves,  —  the  former  in 
its  natural  state,  the  latter  with  the  seed-coats  removed. 

The  pod  is  irregular  and  angular,  much  like  some  forms  of 
cucumbers,  but  more  pointed  at  the  lower  extremity,  and  more 
distinctly  grooved.  It  measures  in  length  nine  inches  to  a 
foot,  or  even  more,  and  about  half  as  much  in  diameter.  The 
color,  when  young,  is  green,  becoming  later  dark  yellow  or  yellow- 
ish brown.  The  rind  is  thick  and  tough.  The  pod  is  filled  with 
closely  packed  "  beans,"  or  seeds,  imbedded  in  a  mass  of  cellular 
tissue,  sometimes  of  pleasant  subacid  taste.  The  seeds  are  about 
as  large  as  ordinary  almonds,  whitish  when  fresh,  and  of  a  dis- 
agreeable bitter  taste.  When  dried  they  become  brown. 

The  fruits  are  about  four  months  in  ripening;  but  they  appear 
and  mature  the  whole  year  through.  In  point  of  fact,  however, 
there  are  chief  harvests,  usually  in  early  spring,  but  this  is  different 
for  different  countries. 

The  following  extract  from  a  comparatively  recent  consular 
report  gives  a  clear  idea  of  the  modern  method  of  cultivating 
the  plant  in  some  parts  of  South  America.  The  extract  was 
given  in  our  former  edition,  but  it  is  thought  best  to  tran- 
scribe it  here. 

"The  tree  grows  to  the  average  height  of  thirteen  feet,  and  from 
five  to  eight  inches  in  diameter,  is  of  spreading  habit  and  healthy 
growth,  and  although  requiring  much  more  care  and  attention  than 
the  coffee-tree,  yet  its  equally  reliable  crops  require  comparatively 
little  labor  in  properly  preparing  for  the  market. 


20  THE   CHOCOLATE-PLANT: 

x 

"...  There  are  two  varieties  of  the  cocoa-tree  cultivated  in  Venez- 
uela, known  as  El  Criollo  and  El  Trinitario,  respectively,  the  former 
of  which,  though  not  so  prolific,  nor  as  early  fruiting  as  the  latter,  is 
yet  superior  to  it  in  size,  color,  sweetness,  and  oleaginous  properties 
of  the  fruit,  and  in  the  fact  that  it  always  finds  ready  sale,  while  the 
latter  is  often  dull  or  neglected.  The  difference  in  price  of  the  two 
varieties  is  also  marked,  the  former  being  quoted  at  $28  to  $30  per 
fanega  (no  pounds),  while  the  latter  commands  approximately  half 
that  price. 

"  While  coffee  can  be  successfully  cultivated  under  a  temperature  of 
60  degrees  F.,  the  cocoa-tree,  for  proper  development  and  remunera- 
tive crops,  requires  a  temperature  of  80  degrees  F. ;  hence  the  area  of 
the  cocoa  belt  is  comparatively  restricted,  and  the  cocoa-planter  pre- 
sumably has  not  to  fear  the  fierce  competition  that  he  has  encountered 
in  the  cultivation  of  cotton  and  coffee.  Besides  the  condition  of 
temperature  above  stated,  this  crop  needs  a  moist  soil  and  humid 
atmosphere;  and  so  the  lands  along  the  coast  of  the  Caribbean  sea, 
sloping  from  the  mountain-tops  to  the  shore,  bedewed  by  the  ex- 
halations of  the  sea  and  irrigated  by  the  numerous  rivulets  that 
course  down  the  valleys,  are  found  to  be,  in  all  respects,  well  adapted 
to  the  profitable  cultivation  of  cocoa.  And  while  the  lands  in  the 
interior  possessing  facilities  for  irrigation  may  be  said  to  be  equally 
as  good  for  the  purpose,  yet  the  absence  of  roads,  and  the  conse- 
quently difficult  transportation  of  produce  on  the  backs  of  donkeys 
over  rugged  mountain  paths,  materially  reduce  the  profits  on  the  crop 
before  it  reaches  the  market. 

"  A  cocoa  plantation  is  set  in  quite  the  same  manner  as  an  apple- 
orchard,  except  that  the  young  stalks  may  be  transplanted  from  the 
nursery  after  two  months'  growth.  No  preparation  of  the  soil  is  deemed 
necessary,  and  no  manures  are  applied.  The  young  trees  are  planted 
about  fifteen  feet  equidistant,  which  will  accommodate  two  hundred 
trees  to  the  acre.  Between  rows,  and  at  like  spaces,  are  planted  rows 
of  the  Bucare,  a  tree  of  rapid  growth,  that  serves  to  shade  the  soil 
as  well  as  to  shield  the  young  trees  from  the  torrid  sun.  Small  per- 
manent trenches  must  be  maintained  from  tree  to  tree  throughout  the 
entire  length  of  the  rows,  so  that,  at  least  once  in  the  week,  the  stream, 


ITS  NATURAL  HISTORY.  21 

descending  from  the  mountains,  may  be  turned  into  these  little  chan- 
nels and  bear  needful  moisture  to  trees  and  soil.  At  the  age  of  five 
years  the  plantation  begins  to  bear  fruit,  and  annually  yields  two 
crops,  that  ripening  in  June  being  termed  the  crop  of  San  Juan,  and 
that  maturing  at  Christmas  being  known  as  the  crop  of  La  Navidad. 
The  average  age  to  which  the  trees  attain,  under  proper  care,  may  be 
estimated  at  forty  years,  during  which  period  it  will  give  fair  to  full 
crops  of  fruit ;  but  of  course  it  must  be  understood  that,  as  in  our 
fruit  orchards,  a  new  tree  must  be  set  from  time  to  time  to  replace  one 
that  may  be  decayed  or  blighted.  After  careful  inquiry  it  may  be 
safely  stated  that  the  average  crop  of  the  cocoa  plantation  at  ten 
years  of  age,  and  under  a  proper  state  of  cultivation,  will  amount  to 
five  hundred  or  six  hundred  pounds  per  acre." 

The  method  of  preparing  the  fruit  for  shipment  is  thus  de- 
scribed in  the  "  Encyclopaedia  Britannica  "  :  - 

"  In  gathering,  the  workman  is  careful  to  cut  down  only  fully 
ripened  pods,  which  he  adroitly  accomplishes  with  a  long  pole  armed 
with  two  prongs,  or  a  knife  at  its  extremity.  The  pods  are  left  in  a 
.heap  on  the  ground  for  about  twenty-four  hours;  they  are  then  cut 
open  and  the  seeds  are  taken  out  and  carried  in  baskets  to  the  place 
where  they  undergo  the  operation  of  sweating  or  curing.  There  the 
acid  juice  which  accompanies  the  seeds  is  first  drained  off,  after  which 
they  are  placed  in  a  sweating-box,  in  which  they  are  enclosed  and 
allowed  to  ferment  for  some  time,  great  care  being  taken  to  keep  the 
temperature  from  rising  too  high.  The  fermenting  process  is,  in  some 
cases,  affected  by  throwing  the  seeds  into  holes  or  trenches  in  the 
ground,  and  covering  them  with  earth  or  clay.  The  seeds  in  this  pro- 
cess, which  is  called  "  claying,"  are  occasionally  stirred  to  keep  the  fer- 
mentation from  proceeding  too  violently.  The  sweating  is  a  process 
which  requires  the  very  greatest  attention  and  experience,  as  on  it, 
to  a  great  extent,  depends  the  flavor  of  the  seeds  and  their  fitness  for 
preservation.  The  operation  varies  according  to  the  state  of  the 
weather,  but  a  period  of  about  two  days  yields  the  best  results.  There- 
after the  seeds  are  exposed  to  the  sun  for  drying,  and  those  of  a  fine 


22  THE   CHOCOLATE-PLANT. 

quality  should   then  assume  a  warm,  reddish  tint,  which  characterizes 
beans  of  a  superior  quality." 

Cocoa-beans  are  derived  chiefly  from  the  following  sources, 
here  arranged  alphabetically.  A  recent  author  has  classified 
them  under  two  heads,  unfermented  and  fermented ;  but  this 
classification  is  very  misleading,  since  it  happens  that  from  a  few 
of  the  places  mentioned  variable  proportions  of  both  sorts  are 
brought  to  market.  Ariba  (Ecuador),  Bahia  (Brazil),  Caracas 
(Venezuela),  Cayenne  (French  Guiana),  Ceylon,  Guatemala,  Haiti, 
or  Port  au  Prince,  Java,  Machala,  or  ordinary  Guayaquil  (Ecua- 
dor), Maracaiba  (Colombia),  Mararion  (Brazil),  St.  Domingo, 
Surinam  (Dutch  Guiana),  Trinidad  (W.  I.),  from  Africa,  the 
Seychelles,  Martinique,  and  Bourbon,  variable  amounts  are  begin- 
ning to  appear  as  regular  products.  It  is  generally  understood 
that  some  of  the  best  sorts  of  South  American  cocoa  are  con- 
sumed at  home  and  do  not  find  their  way,  in  definite  quantities, 
or  as  a  stated  supply,  to  any  foreign  ports.  Among  these  are 
Soconusco  and  Esmeraldas.  At  the  last  French  exposition  these 
and  other  very  fine  sorts  from  Venezuela  and  Ecuador  were  ex- 
hibited. New  fields  are  being  opened  up  in  many  directions  to 
meet  the  increasing  demand  for  the  product. 


III. 


THE  SEEDS  OF  THE  CHOCOLATE-PLANT  AS  THEY 
APPEAR  IN  COMMERCE.  THEIR  MICROSCOPIC 
AND  CHEMICAL  CHARACTERS. 

THE  seeds  of  the  chocolate-plant  are  brought  into  the  market 
in  their  crude  state,  as  almond-shaped  "  beans,"  which  differ 
in  color  and  somewhat  in  texture.  It  is  not  uncommon  to  find 
the  external  surface  of  the  bean  more  or  less  covered  with  a 
thin  irregular  layer  of  attached  earth,  but  this  is  generally  pretty 
well  cleared  off  during  the  transportation. 

Upon  the  color  of  shell  and  kernel,  the  relative  brittleness,  the 
flavor,  and  the  odor,  depends  the  market  value  of  the  seeds. 

The  dried  seeds  have  a  papery,  brittle  shell,  which  is  very 
smooth  on  the  inside,  but  on  the  outside  exhibits,  under  the 
microscope,  a  few  short  hairs  and  round  excrescences.  But  these 
are  mostly  lost  by  the  rough  handling  and  by  the  attrition  of  the 
seeds  with  one  another  during  transportation.  The  kernel  consists 
of  two  large  cotyledons  or  seed-leaves,  reddish-gray  or  reddish- 
brown,  with  a  shining,  oily  surface ;  the  whole  crushing  rather 
easily  into  a  loose  mass  of  fragments.  The  kernel,  when  dry,  has 
a  minute,  tough,  almost  stony  radicle  which  separates  easily  from 
the  cotyledons.  Microscopic  examination  shows  that  the  cells  of 
the  seed-leaves  contain  albumen,  oily  matters,  —  sometimes  in  a 
crystalline  condition,  —  crystals  of  an  entirely  different  shape, 
starch,  coloring  substances  in  special  receptacles  known  as  pig- 


24  THE  CHOCOLATE-PLANT: 

ment-cells,  and  ducts  with  spiral  markings.  The  starch  grains 
do  not  have  any  very  characteristic  form  or  markings :  they  are 
generally  spherical  and  simple.  The  only  peculiarity  worth  men- 
tioning, is  the  relative  slowness  with  which  they  are  acted  on  by 
hot  water  and  by  iodine.  The  coloring  substances  are  mainly  of 
a  carmine  or  violet  color,  and  are  distinguished  by  the  change  of 
shade  when  an  alkali  is  added,  becoming  thereby  darker. 

These  are  the  only  structural  elements  which  a  pure  powder 
or  paste  of  chocolate  should  show  under  the  microscope.  •  Any 
other  substances  must  be  recognized  as  accidental  or  intentional 
additions. 

All  seeds  of  whatever  kind  contain,  as  a  part  of  their  substance, 
the  matter  of  which  cell-walls  are  made ;  namely,  cellulose.  The 
percentage  differs  in  different  seeds,  in  those  of  the  chocolate- 
plant  being  about  three  in  the  hundred.  Cellulose  has  the  same 
chemical  composition  as  starch ;  but  its  physical  properties  are  not 
the  same  as  those  of  starch,  among  which  may  be  mentioned  its 
entire  insolubility  in  boiling  water. 

Starch  forms,  on  an  average,  eight  to  ten  per  cent  of  chocolate- 
seeds.  It  consists  of  minute  spherical  grains,  not  distinguishable 
from  that  found  in  many  other  kinds  of  seeds.  Traces  of  gum 
and  of  other  allied  bodies  are  also  present  in  the  seeds. 

Albuminoids,  or  substances  resembling,  in  a  general  way,  the 
albumin  of  egg,  occur  in  chocolate-seeds  as  they  do  in  other  seeds, 
and  in  a  somewhat  higher  amount  than  in  certain  other  cases  in 
which  the  seeds  are  used  as  food.  The  percentage  ranges  from 
about  fifteen  to  twenty,  depending  on  the  variety.  These  albumin- 
oids are  compounds  of  nitrogen,  and  are  extremely  nutritious.  In 
the  seeds  they  occur  in  a  readily  assimilable  form,  fit  for  digestion. 
Their  peculiar  relations  as  flesh-formers  are  referred  to  in  the 
section  treating  of  the  physiology  of  chocolate-seeds. 


ITS  SEEDS  AS   THEY  APPEAR  IN  COMMERCE.          2$ 

Cacao-red  occurs  as  a  coloring  matter  in  small  amount.  It  is 
rendered  dark  by  alkalies. 

Theobromine,  the  active  principle  of  the  cocoa-bean,  consti- 
tutes less  than  one  per  cent  of  the  weight  of  the  seeds,  but  it 
varies  greatly  in  amount  in  different  seeds,  ranging  from  -ffa  of 
one  per  cent  in  some,  to  a  trifle  over  one  per  cent  in  others. 

The  ash  left  on  completely  burning  cocoa-beans  is  not  far  from 
four  per  cent.  Its  composition  is  substantially  that  of  the  ash 
of  seeds  of  other  plants. 

Cocoa-butter,  or  oil,  constitutes  not  far  from  fifty  per  cent  of 
good  cocoa-beans.  The  oil  is  remarkable  for  its  freedom  from 
rancidity  and  its  very  bland  character.  Its  uses  are  innumerable. 

The  following  averages  of  many  analyses  by  a  leading  recent 
authority  may  be  of  interest :  — 

UNROASTED. 

Moisture 7.11 

Oil 51.78 

Theobromine ...         .35 

Starch 5.78 

Cellulose 3.1 

Other  carbohydrates,  glucosides,  etc.    .     .     .  10.05 

Protein  matters „  15.61 

Ash 3.60 

ROASTED. 

Moisture 6.51 

Oil 49. 24 

Theobromine 43 

Starch 10.43 

Cellulose 3.1 

Other  carbohydrates,  glucosides,  etc.    .     .     .  7.78 

Protein  matters 18.33 

Ash 3-92 


IV. 


MANUFACTURE  OF  CHOCOLATE  AND  BREAKFAST 

COCOA. 

have  already  called  attention  to  the  simple  process  by 
which  the  natives  of  Central  America  prepared  a  nutri- 
tious beverage  from  the  seeds  of  the  chocolate-plant.  The  essen- 
tial features  of  this  process,  modified  and  greatly  improved  by 
modern  science,  are  worthy  of  consideration  at  this  time. 

The  selected  cocoa-beans  are  first  cleaned  from  the  dust  and 
attached  particles  which  have  come  from  various  sources  during 
the  fermentation  of  the  seeds.  The  machines  for  cleaning  the 
beans  are  very  ingenious  and  effective,  removing  from  the  seed- 
coat  every  trace  of  foreign  matter. 

The  cleaned  seeds  are  next  roasted  in  the  most  careful  manner, 
every  precaution  being  taken  to  secure  a  uniform  effect  through 
the  whole  mass.  During  the  roasting  the  seeds  change  color 
somewhat  and  become  more  or  less  modified  in  taste.  In  under- 
roasted  seeds  the  flavor  is  not  fully  developed,  while  in  over- 
roasted seeds  the  pleasant  taste  is  likely  to  become  greatly 
impaired,  or  it  may  even  be  wholly  replaced  by  a  bitter  and 
harsh  flavor.  These  relations  of  color  and  taste  to  the  roasting 
of  the  seeds  make  this  portion  of  the  manufacture  one  of  the 
most  delicate  processes  from  beginning  to  end. 

By  the  roasting  the  shell  becomes  more  readily  detachable, 
and  its  complete  removal  is  the  next  step.  The  crushing  of  the 
seeds  into  small  fragments  is  easily  accomplished  ;  and  this  is 


CHOCOLATE  AND  BREAKFAST  COCOA.  2? 

followed  by  a  thorough  winnowing,  by  which  the  lighter  shells 
are  carried  away  by  themselves,  leaving  the  clean  fragments  of 
the  roasted  seeds  ready  for  further  manipulation. 

Among  the  fragments  can  be  detected  minute  and  very  tough 
bits  of  tissue.  These  bits  are  the  hardened  germs,  or  rather 
portions  of  the  germs,  and  these  are  separated  from  the  rest  by  an 
apparatus  of  much  simplicity  and  efficiency. 

The  clean  shells  are  usually  placed  at  once  in  packages  for 
transportation.  They  are  extensively  used  for  the  domestic  prep- 
aration of  a  wholesome  and  very  low-priced  drink.  This  beverage 
contains  a  fair  proportion  of  the  active  principle  of  the  chocolate- 
seeds  themselves,  and  the  flavor  is  suggestive  of  chocolate. 

The  cleaned  fragments  constitute  the  so-called  "  cocoa-nibs  " 
of  some  foreign  markets,  and  in  this  state  they  are  used  for  the 
preparation  of  a  simple  decoction.  But  in  this  form  they  require 
to  be  boiled  a  good  while  for  the  development  of  flavor,  and  it  is 
therefore  better  to  have  them  treated  beforehand  in  order  to 
reduce  the  time  of  boiling;  and  this  is  all  the  more  necessary, 
since  during  the  long  boiling  a  part  of  the  more  delicate  aroma 
peculiar  to  chocolate-seeds  is  apt  to  be  dissipated. 

We  are  next  to  trace  these  fragments,  through  the  chocolate- 
mill,  and  afterwards  follow  similar  fragments  through  the  cocoa- 
factory. 

In  the  preparation  of  chocolate,  the  fragments  are  ground  by 
a  complicated  mechanism  until  they  attain  the  greatest  degree  of 
fineness,  and  constitute  a  perfectly  homogeneous  mass  or  paste. 
If  the  chocolate  is  to  be  a  plain  chocolate,  it  is  to  receive  its 
delicate  flavoring  and  then  go  directly  into  the  moulds  for  shaping 
it.  Every  step  of  the  process  has  to  be  watched  with  the  most 
assiduous  care.  When  the  chocolate  is  formed  and  properly 
cooled,  it  is  wrapped  and  packed  for  the  market. 


2.8  THE   CHOCOLATE-PLANT. 

But  if  the  chocolate  is  to  be  sweetened,  a  definite  amount  of 
the  purest  sugar,  previously  pulverized,  is  to  be  added,  the  whole 
ground  and  commingled,  the  proper  flavoring  of  pure  vanilla  added, 
and  the  semi-solid  mass  formed  in  moulds  as  before.  After  being 
moulded  it  is  sent  to  the  packing-room  and  wrapped. 

The  variations  in  the  process  are  innumerable,  but  all  of  them 
are  comparatively  unimportant  when  taken  singly  ;  the  skill  in  the 
manufacture  requires  that  each  of  these  slight  changes  should  be 
made  at  just  the  right  time  and  in  the  right  way.  In  the  manu- 
facture of  Walter  Baker  and  Co.'s  chocolate,  this  skill  has  become 
developed  to  a  very  high  degree  during  the  hundred  years  of 
success.  That  the  firm  is  ready  to  avail  itself  of  every  appliance 
known  in  modern  manufacture,  is  seen  by  their  adoption  of  the 
complicated  machinery  illustrated  on  page  29.  This  chocolate- 
machine  has  a  capacity  of  fr.e  tons  of  pure  chocolate  daily.  It 
is  accessible  to  visitors,  who  may  apply  at  the  office  in  Dorchester 
for  permission  to  see  it  in  operation. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  detail  the  steps  of  manufacture  of  many 
of  the  chocolate  specialties  of  the  firm. 

We  turn  now  to  the  consideration  of  breakfast  cocoa. 

The  manufacture  of  breakfast  cocoa  is  based  upon  two  impor- 
tant factors :  first,  the  removal  of  a  definite  portion  of  the  cocoa- 
oil  from  the  roasted  seeds ;  and  second,  increasing  the  miscibility 
of  the  powdered  seeds  by  securing  the  greatest  practicable  degree 
of  fineness. 


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1  in 

I: 


1  J        T 


THE   CHOCOLATE-PLANT: 


While  the  oil  of  the  chocolate-seed  is  perfectly  wholesome, 
there  are  some  persons  who  find  in  the  percentage  natural  to 
the  seeds  a  too  large  amount  for  easy  digestion.  The  removal 

of  a  part  of  this,  which 
might  with  propriety  be 
called  an  excess  of  the  oil, 
was  practised  even  in  very 
early  days,  as  is  seen  in  the 
cut  herewith  given,  taken 
from  an  old  work  on  the  sub- 
ject. The  present  method 
of  extracting  the  oil  is  not 
essentially  different,  save  in 
a  few  particulars,  from  that 
here  figured,  and  therefore 
need  not  be  described  in 
detail. 

The  method  of  manufac- 
ture is  substantially  as  fol- 
lows :  the  ground  frag- 
ments of  roasted  seeds  are 
subjected  to  pressure,  and 
with  the  result  of  withdraw- 
ing just  as  much  oil  as  the  manufacturers  desire  to  abstract.  The 
pressed  mass  is,  in  the  most  successful  process,  treated  mechanically 
in  such  a  manner  as  to  divide  and  subdivide  the  minute  particles 
until  they  are  capable  of  passing  through  a  sieve  having  several 
thousand  meshes  to  the  square  inch.  But  such  pulverization  as  this 
would,  under  ordinary  circumstances,  reduce  the  mass  to  a  dull  and 
unattractive  powder.  In  the  process  devised  by  the  firm  of  Walter 


CHOCOLATE  AND  BREAKFAST  COCOA.  31 

Baker  and  Co.,  this  high  degree  of  fineness  is  secured  without 
any  loss  of  brilliancy  in  the  powder,  —  the  color  being  of  the 
bright-red  which  is  not  only  attractive  in  appearance,  but  when 
conjoined  with  the  natural  chocolate  odor  and  flavor  is  character- 
istic of  absolutely  pure  cocoa  of  the  highest  grade. 

It  is  instructive  to  compare  such  cocoa  with  the  cocoas  pre- 
pared by  what  is  known  in  chemical  technology  as  the  chemical 
process.  The  latter  are  prepared  by  treatment  with  alkaline 
matters  which  act  on  the  coloring  substances  in  the  seeds,  increas- 
ing the  apparent  effect  of  hot  water  when  the  latter  is  added.  In 
chemically  prepared  cocoas,  the  exquisite  natural  odor  and  flavor 
of  pure  cocoa-seeds  have  been  diminished  or  wholly  lost  by  the 
severe  treatment  to  which  the  materials  have  been  subjected.  In 
some  cases  the  loss  of  the  natural  flavor  is  sought  to  be  partially 
supplied  by  the  use  of  fragrant  gums,  wholly  foreign  to  the  natural 
product. 

The  detection  of  these  admixtures  is  generally  easy.  Compari- 
son with  the  well-known  pure  breakfast  cocoa  of  Walter  Baker  and 
Co.  will  reveal  at  once  the  vast  superiority  of  a  product  which  has 
not  been  treated  by  chemicals,  but  which  contains  only  the  finest 
possible  powder  of  the  best  chocolate-seeds  freed  from  the  excess 
of  oil.  The  exquisite  flavor  and  odor  of  the  pure  product  are  due 
wholly  to  the  seeds  themselves,  since  absolutely  no  foreign  matter 
is  added  from  first  to  last.  Walter  Baker  and  Co.'s  breakfast  cocoa 
can  be  used  by  students  of  the  microscope  and  of  chemistry  as  a 
perfect  type  of  the  highest  order  of  excellence  in  manufacture. 
The  enormous  increase  in  consumption  of  Baker's  cocoa  and 
chocolate  indicates  that  our  discriminating  public  appreciate  a 
thoroughly  good  article  when  they  see  it. 


V. 


SOME  PHYSIOLOGICAL  ASPECTS  OF  CHOCOLATE- 
SEEDS.  —  VALUE  OF  CHOCOLATE  AS  AN  ARTI- 
CLE OF  FOOD. 

THE  seeds  of  plants  contain  a  germ,  or  embryo,  together  with 
a  certain  amount  of  food.  As  soon  as  the  germ  sprouts,  the 
food,  or  a  good  part  of  it,  is  consumed  by  the  seedling,  being  used 
by  it  in  the  formation  of  new  parts,  such  as  roots  and  leaves  by 
which  the  materials  for  more  food  can  be  obtained  from  the  soil  and 
air.  Now  it  happens  that  the  food  of  plants  is  pretty  much  the 
same  as  the  food  of  animals,  although  there  is  this  marked  differ- 
ence in  the  manner  of  procuring  it :  plants  can  construct  their 
own  food  from  inorganic  or  mineral  matters  taken  from  the  earth 
and  atmosphere,  while  animals,  even  those  which  are  most  like 
plants,  must  have  their  supply  of  food  from  organic  nature. 

Since,  then,  plants  prepare  the  food  which  animals  are  to  use 
(of  course  flesh-eating  animals  use  their  plants,  so  to  speak,  at 
second-hand),  it  comes  to  pass  very  naturally  that  the  food  in  a 
good  many  seeds  has  been  recognized  from  early  times  as  very 
useful  food  for  man.  Thus  the  cereals  —  wheat,  maize,  oats,  bar- 
ley, and  rice  —  are  the  seeds  of  grasses  ;  and  there  are  many  other 
seeds,  such  as  beans,  peas,  buckwheat,  and  so  on,  which  have  been 
appropriated  as  food  by  man  from  remote  antiquity.  But  the 
seeds  of  some  plants  are  unfit  for  human  food,  owing  to  disagree- 
able properties  which  they  possess;  while  there  are  a  few  which 
stand  on  the  very  edge  of  the  limit  of  foods,  and  have  been  used  in 
time  of  scarcity. 


CHOCOLATE  AS  AN  ARTICLE   OF  FOOD.  33 

The  seeds  of  at  least  two  plants  are  used  as  important 
adjuncts  to  our  list  of  foods,  and  can  be  enumerated  among 
foods  without  any  impropriety.  These  are  coffee  and  cocoa. 
They  contain  nutritive  properties,  —  the  latter  in  very  much 
higher  degree  than  the  former,  —  and  they  possess  also  peculiar 
constituents  which  entitle  them  to  rank  as  luxuries.  These  pecul- 
iar constituents  are  (i)  flavoring  matters,  and  (2)  an  active  prin- 
ciple. But,  either  from  its  constitution  or  from  its  association  in 
the  seed,  the  active  principle  of  coffee,  although  it  has  nearly  or 
quite  the  same  ultimate  composition  as  the  active  principle  of 
cocoa,  is  unlike  it  in  its  effects.  The  active  principle  of  cocoa  is 
substantially  free,  as  used  in  its  preparations,  from  any  undesirable 
effects  on  the  nervous  system.  This  active  principle  of  cocoa  is 
Theobromine. 

The  essentials  of  a  perfect  food  are  (i)  a  certain  amount  of 
carbohydrates,  (2)  of  albuminoids,  and  (3)  certain  mineral  matters, 
these  latter  being  substantially  the  same  in  all  seeds  used  as  food. 
In  cocoa  these  three  groups  are  combined  in  proper  proportion  to 
constitute  a  complete  food,  but  there  is  superadded  the  active  prin- 
ciple, Theobromin^  which  places  it  at  once  in  the  class  of  luxuries 
as  well  as  of  necessary  foods. 

When  cocoa-seeds  are  prepared  properly  for  food,  without 
doing  violence  to  the  chemical  relations  of  the  different  compo- 
nents, a  comforting  nutritive  article  of  the  highest  value  is  ob- 
tained. This  ideal  method  of  preparation  is  not  a  chemical 
torturing  by  the  addition  of  foreign  ingredients,  as  in  the  alkali 
process,  but  it  consists  in  the  complete  unlocking,  by  perfectly 
natural,  mechanical  means,  of  all  the  virtues  of  the  seeds.  We  do 
no!  try  to  render  the  albuminoids  of  wheat  and  other  grains  soluble 
by  means  of  ammonia,  soda,  or  potash,  nor  do  we  think  it  desirable 
to  increase  the  solubility  of  the  albuminoids  of  egg  and  meat  by 


34  THE   CHOCOLATE-PLANT. 

adding  caustic  or  carbonated  alkalies  to  them  before  they  are  used. 
And  yet  chemical  processes  analogous  to  these  have  been  de- 
vised and  are  sometimes  used  with  regard  to  cocoa.  In  most  cases 
these  added  substances  are  detected  in  the  increased  amount  of 
mineral  matters  found  in  the  ash  after  burning  the  preparation. 
The  amount  of  ash  in  pure  cocoa  is  about  four  per  cent.  Any 
appreciable  amount  above  this  may  be  attributed  to  the  admixture 
of  mineral  matters  used  in  the  preparation. 

The  oil  in  pure  chocolate-seeds  is  about  fifty  per  cent  of  the 
whole  weight.  Although  the  oil  is  exceedingly  bland  and  free 
from  rancidity,  it  has  been  found  expedient  in  some  cases  to 
withdraw  a  part  of  this  oil,  leaving  a  smaller  amount  in  the  prod- 
uct. This  is  the  method  pursued  in  the  manufacture  of  the 
powdered  cocoas.  With  this  reduction  in  the  quantity  of  oil, 
the  resultant  beverage  is  less  likely  to  disagree  with  delicate 
digestion. 

It  is  in  all  cases  of  the  first  importance  to  obtain  only  pure 
cocoa  of  the  highest  quality,  free  from  any  admixture  of  foreign 
matter,  such  as  the  alkalies  or  their  carbonates  ;  and  further,  the 
product  ought  to  be  of  the  greatest  degree  of  fineness.  With 
regard  to  the  flavors  added  to  chocolate,  it  is  perhaps  needless  to 
say  that  they  should  be  of  the  utmost  degree  of  purity.  This  is 
especially  true  of  vanilla,  which  owing  to  its  high  cost  is  frequently 
replaced  by  artificial  flavors.  There  is,  in  one  respect,  a  notable 
difference  between  sweet  chocolate  and  cocoa  :  the  former  may  be 
flavored,  the  latter  should  never  be.  A  pure  cocoa  must  be  abso- 
lutely dependent  on  its  own  delicious,  natural  odor  and  flavor.  No 
addition  of  any  substance  of  any  kind  is  admissible. 


SUGGESTIONS 

RELATIVE  TO 

THE  COOKING  OF  CHOCOLATE  AND  COCOA. 

BY    MRS.  ELLEN    H.  RICHARDS, 

Of  the  Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology. 

r  I  ^HE  flavor  of  the  cocoa-bean  seems  to  be  almost  universally 
•*•  liked,  and  the  use  of  the  various  preparations  made  from  it 
is  constantly  increasing.  From  the  sweet  chocolate  with  which 
the  traveller  now  provides  himself  in  all  journeys  in  which  the 
supply  of  food  is  doubtful  either  in  quantity  or  quality,  to  delicate 
coloring  and  flavoring  of  cakes  and  ices,  nearly  all  kinds  of  culinary 
preparations  |pave  benefited  by  the  abundance  of  this  favorite 
substance. 

In  these  forms,  chocolate  is  used  in  a  semi-raw  state,  the 
bean  having  been  simply  roasted  at  a  gentle  heat,  ground,  and 
mixed  with  sugar,  which  holds  the  fat.  By  varying  the  quan- 
tity of  the  chocolate  to  be  mixed  with  the  ingredients  of  the  cake 
or  ice,  an  unlimited  variety  of  flavors  can  be  obtained. 

In  preparing  it  as  a  beverage  for  the  table  a  mistake  has  been 
frequently  made  in  considering  chocolate  merely  as  a  flavor,  an 
adjunct  to  the  rest  of  the  meal,  instead  of  giving  it  its  due  promi- 
nence as  a  real  food,  containing  all  of  the  necessary  nutritive  prin- 
ciples. A  cup  of  chocolate  made  with  sugar  and  milk  is  in  itself 
a  fair  breakfast. 

There  is  much  to  be  said  in  favor  of  preparations  of  the 
whole  bean  which  secure  all  of  the  valuable  nutrition  contained  in 


36  THE   CHOCOLATE-PLANT. 

this  "  food  for  the  gods,"  and  rightly  understood,  it  is  possible  to 
make  them  more  important  articles  of  diet  than  they  now  are. 
But  since  the  large  percentage  of  fat  seems  to  require  correspond- 
ingly large  quantities  of  sugar  to  render  the  beverage  palatable, 
and  this  very  rich,  sweet  drink  soon  cloys  if  made  strong  enough 
to  be  nutritious,  it  is,  fortunately,  possible  to  extract  the  larger 
part  of  the  fat  without  injury  to  the  flavor  so  characteristic  of 
chocolate.  In  this  form,  called  cocoa,  less  sugar  and  more  milk  are 
needed,  and  the  resulting  beverage  suits  even  delicate  stomachs, 
and  is  yet  of  high  food  value. 

It  is  the  object  of  all  cooking  to  render  raw  material  more 
palatable  and  more  nutritious,  and  therefore  more  digestible.  The 
cooking  of  cocoa  and  chocolate  is  no  exception  to  this  rule.  Cer- 
tain extractive  principles  are  soluble  only  in  water  which  has 
reached  the  boiling-point  ;  and  the  starch,  which  the  seed  contains, 
is  swollen  only  at  this  temperature. 

Chocolate  or  cocoa  is  not  properly  cooked  by  having  boiling 
water  poured  over  it.  It  is  true  that  as  the  whole  powder  is  in 
suspension  and  is  swallowed,  its  food  material  can  be  assimilated 
as  it  is  when  the  prepared  chocolate  is  eaten  raw ;  but  in  order  to 
bring  out  the  full,  fine  flavor  and  to  secure  the  most  complete 
digestibility,  the  preparation,  whatever  it  be,  should  be  subjected  to 
the  boiling-point  for  a  few  minutes.  In  this  all  connoisseurs  are 
agreed. 


RECEIPTS. 


BY    MISS    PARLOA. 


PLAIN    CHOCOLATE. 

For  six  people,  use  one  quart  of  milk,  two  ounces  of  W.  Baker  &  Co.'s 
No.  i  chocolate,  one  tablespoonful  of  corn-starch,  three  tablespoonfuls  of 
sugar,  and  two  tablespoonfuls  of  hot  water. 

Mix  the  corn-starch  with  one  gill  of  the  milk.  Put  the  remainder  of  the 
milk  on  to  heat  in  the  double-boiler.  When  the  milk  comes  to  the  boiling- 
point  stir  in  the  corn-starch,  and  cook  for  ten  minutes.  Have  the  choco- 
late cut  in  fine  bits  and  put  it  in  a  small  iron  or  granite-ware  pan ;  add  the 
sugar  and  water,  and  place  the  pan  over  a  hot  fire.  Stir  constantly  until 
the  mixture  is  smooth  and  glossy.  Add  this  to  the  hot  milk  and  beat  the 
mixture  with  a  whisk  until  it  is  frothy.  Or  the  chocolate  may  be  poured 
back  and  forth  from  the  boiler  to  a  pitcher,  holding  high  the  vessel  from 
which  you  pour.  This  will  give  a  thick  froth.  Serve  at  once. 

If  you  prefer  not  to  have  the  chocolate  thick,  omit  the  corn-starch. 


CHOCOLATE  MADE  WITH  CONDENSED  MILK. 

Follow  the  rule  for  plain  chocolate,  substituting  water  for  the  milk,  and 
adding  three  tablespoonfuls  of  condensed  milk  when  the  chocolate  is 
added. 

CHOCOLATE;    VIENNA   STYLE. 

Use  four  ounces  of  vanilla  chocolate,  one  quart  of  milk,  three  table- 
spoonfuls  of  hot  water,  and  one  tablespoonful  of  sugar. 

Cut  the  chocolate  in  fine  bits.  Put  the  milk  on  the  stove  in  the  double- 
boiler,  and  when  it  has  been  heated  to  the  boiling-point,  put  the  chocolate, 


38  THE   CHOCOLATE-PLANT. 

sugar,  and  water  in  a  small  iron  or  granite-ware  pan  and  stir  over  a  hot  fire 
until  smooth  and  glossy.  Stir  this  mixture  into  the  hot  milk,  and  beat  well 
with  a  whisk.  Serve  at  once,  putting  a  tablespoonful  of  whipped  cream  in 
each  cup  and  then  filling  up  with  the  chocolate. 

The  plain  chocolate  may  be  used  instead  of  the  vanilla,  but  in  that  case 
use  a  teaspoonful  of  vanilla  extract  and  three  generous  tablespooniuls  of 
sugar  instead  of  one. 

BREAKFAST   COCOA. 

Breakfast  cocoa  is  powdered  so  fine  that  it  can  be  dissolved  by  pouring 
boiling  water  on  it.  For  this  reason  it  is  often  prepared  at  the  table.  A 
small  teaspoonful  of  the  powder  is  put  in  the  cup  with  a  teaspoonful  of 
sugar ;  on  this  is  poured  two-thirds  of  a  cupful  of  boiling  water,  and  milk 
or  cream  is  added  to  suit  the  individual  taste.  This  is  very  convenient ; 
but  cocoa  is  not  nearly  so  good  when  prepared  in  this  manner  as  when  it 
is  boiled. 

For  six  cupfuls  of  cocoa  use  two  tablespoonfuls  of  the  powder,  two 
tablespoonfuls  of  sugar,  half  a  pint  of  boiling  water,  and  a  pint  and  a  half 
of  milk.  Put  the  milk  on  the  stove  in  the  double-boiler.  Put  the  cocoa 
and  sugar  in  a  saucepan  and  gradually  pour  the  hot  water  upon  them,  stirring 
all  the  time.  Place  the  saucepan  on  the  fire  and  stir  until  the  contents  boil. 
Let  this  mixture  boil  for  five  minutes ;  then  add  the  boiling  milk,  and  serve. 

A  gill  of  cream  is  a  great  addition  to  this  cocoa. 

CHOCOLATE    CAKE. 

For  two  sheets  of  cake  use  three  ounces  of  W.  Baker  &  Co.'s  No.  i 
chocolate,  three  eggs,  one  cupful  and  three-fourths  of  sifted  pastry  flour,  one 
cupful  and  three-fourths  of  sugar,  half  a  cupful  of  butter,  half  a  cupful  of 
milk,  half  a  teaspoonful  of  vanilla  extract,  one  teaspoonful  and  a  half  of 
baking  powder. 

Grate  the  chocolate.  Beat  the  butter  to  a  cream  and  gradually  beat  in 
the  sugar.  Beat  in  the  milk  and  vanilla,  then  the  eggs  (already  well 
beaten) ,  next  the  chocolate,  and  finally  the  flour,  in  which  the  baking  pow- 
der should  be  mixed.  Pour  into  two  well-buttered  shallow  cake-pans.  Bake 
for  twenty-five  minutes  in  a  moderate  oven.  Frost  or  not,  as  you  like. 


RECEIPTS.  39 

VANILLA   FROSTING. 

Break  the  white  of  one  large  egg  into  a  bowl,  and  gradually  beat  into  it 
one  cupful  of  confectioner's  sugar.  Beat  for  three  minutes,  add  half  a 
teaspoonful  of  vanilla  extract,  and  spread  thinly  on  the  cakes. 

CHOCOLATE   ICING. 

Make  a  vanilla  icing  and  add  one  tablespoonful  of  cold  water  to  it. 
Scrape  fine  one  ounce  of  No.  i  chocolate  and  put  it  in  a  small  iron  or 
granite-ware  saucepan  with  two  tablespoonfuls  of  confectioner's  sugar  and 
one  tablespoonful  of  hot  water.  Stir  over  a  hot  fire  until  smooth  and 
glossy,  then  add  another  tablespoonful  of  hot  water.  Stir  the  dissolved 
chocolate  into  the  vanilla  icing. 

CHOCOLATE   ICE-CREAM. 

For  about  two  quarts  and  a  half  of  cream  use  a  pint  and  a  half  of  milk, 
a  quart  of  thin  cream,  two  cupfuls  of  sugar,  two  ounces  of  No.  i  chocolate, 
two  eggs,  and  two  heaping  tablespoonfuls  of  flour. 

Put  the  milk  on  to  boil  in  the  double-boiler.  Put  the  flour  and  one 
cupful  of  the  sugar  in  a  bowl ;  add  the  eggs,  and  beat  the  mixture  until 
light.  Stir  this  into  the  boiling  milk  and  cook  for  twenty  minutes,  stirring 
often. 

Scrape  the  chocolate  and  put  it  in  a  small  saucepan.  Add  four  table- 
spoonfuls  of  sugar  (which  should  be  taken  from  the  second  cupful)  and  two 
tablespoonfuls  of  hot  water.  Stir  over  a  hot  fire  until  smooth  and  glossy. 
Add  this  to  the  cooking  mixture. 

When  the  preparation  has  cooked  for  twenty  minutes  take  it  from  the 
fire  and  add  the  remainder  of  the  sugar  and  the  cream,  which  should  be 
gradually  beaten  into  the  hot  mixture.  Set  away  to  cool,  and  when  cold, 
freeze. 

CHOCOLATE    PUDDING. 

For  a  small  pudding  use  one  pint  of  milk,  two  tablespoonfuls  and  a 
half  of  corn-starch,  one  ounce  of  chocolate,  two  eggs,  five  tablespoonfuls 


40  THE    CHOCOLATE-PLANT. 

of  powdered  sugar,  one-fourth  ot  a  teaspoonful  of  salt,  and  half  a  teaspoon- 
ful  of  vanilla  extract. 

Mix  the  corn- starch  with  one  gill  of  the  milk.  Put  the  remainder  of 
the  milk  on  to  boil  in  the  double-boiler.  Scrape  the  chocolate.  When  the 
milk  boils,  add  the  corn-starch,  salt,  and  chocolate,  and  cook  for  ten  minutes. 
Beat  the  yolks  of  the  eggs  with  three  tablespoonfuls  of  the  sugar.  Pour 
the  hot  mixture  on  this  and  beat  well.  Turn  into  a  pudding-dish  that  will 
hold  about  a  quart,  and  bake  for  twenty  minutes  in  a  moderate  oven. 

Beat  the  whites  of  the  eggs  to  a  stiff,  dry  froth,  and  gradually  beat  in  the 
remaining  two  tablespoonfuls  of  sugar  and  the  vanilla.  Spread  this  on  the 
pudding  and  return  to  the  oven.  Cook  for  fifteen  minutes  longer,  but  with 
the  oven-door  open.  Serve  either  cold  or  hot. 

BAVARIAN    CHOCOLATE   CREAM. 

For  one  large  mould  of  cream,  use  half  a  package  of  gelatine,  one  gill 
of  milk,  two  quarts  of  whipped  cream,  one  gill  of  sugar,  and  one  ounce  of 
chocolate. 

Soak  the  gelatine  in  the  cold  water  for  two  hours.  Whip  and  drain 
the  cream,  scrape  the  chocolate,  and  put  the  milk  on  to  boil.  Put  the 
chocolate,  two  tablespoonfuls  of  sugar,  and  one  of  hot  water,  in  a  small 
saucepan,  and  stir  on  a  hot  fire  until  smooth  and  glossy.  Stir  this  into  the 
hot  milk.  Now  add  the  soaked  gelatine  and  the  remainder  of  the  sugar. 
Strain  this  mixture  into  a  basin  that  will  hold  two  quarts  or  more.  Place 
the  basin  in  a  pan  of  ice-water  and  stir  until  the  mixture  is  cold,  when  it 
will  begin  to  thicken.  Instantly  begin  to  stir  in  the  whipped  cream,  adding 
half  the  amount  at  first.  When  all  the  cream  has  been  added,  dip  the 
mould  in  cold  water  and  then  turn  the  cream  into  it.  Place  in  the  ice- 
chest  for  an  hour  or  more. 

At  serving-time  dip  the  mould  in  tepid  water.  See  that  the  cream  will 
come  from  the  sides  of  the  mould,  and  turn  out  on  a  flat  dish.  Serve  with 
whipped  cream. 

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